Fierce Healthcare April 13, 2021
A controversial price transparency rule that went into effect in January was intended to enable consumers to comparison shop for certain healthcare services.
But a new study from Kaiser Family Foundation discovered that such comparison shopping is difficult among different providers. The study, published Friday, also found that few hospitals are giving out payer-negotiated rates, a key requirement of the rule.
“Among the few hospitals in this analysis that do provide payer-negotiated rates, the markets in which the payer operates is not always clear,” the study said. “And, due to a lack of standardization, comparing process across hospitals is problematic.”
The study found that the data provided by compliant hospitals could allow for comparisons of prices within that facility.
However,...